Unveiled
by xoSammyRoxxo
Summary: The legendary Ouran Host Club continues into extended lengths of drama and revealed stories the Host Club is to become baffled by. Connections are made and clarifications are to be declared. Welcome back to Ouran Academy.
1. Prologue: Thunder

**_Ouran High School Host Club_ Fan-fiction: "Unveiled"**

_----------_

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran High School Host Club. This is merely a fan-fiction based on this anime._

_**Author's Note:** This is the new version of the prologue. Sorry, everyone. Hope you enjoy it!_

* * *

**Thunder**

~ _The_ _feeling was so unfathomable to her, yet she lived with the fear for so long._ ~

Haruhi had been curled up in a vulnerable position; her head bent to the ground, arms wrapped around her knees, as an age-old quilt covered her. Seeing through the light blue colour of the blanket, it was a sight she refused to look at. Haruhi squeezed her eyes closed and embraced herself for another slash of thunder.

Another strike of murderous lightning occurred. It scared the sanity out of Haruhi once again. She was alone to endure the terror of powerful thunder strong enough to kill even the biggest tree in her neighbourhood. She didn't see this coming. Where were the signs? Her body shook against her will, and her mouth mustered an involuntary whimper.

Haruhi barely thought straight. The terrifying sound lingered in her mind, and she tried to push it all down. She needed to cook dinner for her and her dad; to clean up her bedroom; organize her appliances for the upcoming new school year. Haruhi didn't have time to hide under a quilt that barely kept her warm. The reason for her using it was the significance.

A memorable flashback of her mother rose awake in her working conscious for a full two seconds before another collage of lightning rained through the dark night sky. Haruhi gasped in fright. Her hands flew to her ears to muffle the noise. The illusion was so beautiful…. Why did it have to disappear so soon? She desperately tried to recover the retention, but only to find herself talking to her mother's spirit in her thoughts. _Mother, I wish you were here. I'm afraid_, she admitted. Whenever she felt she was in any sort of change or danger, Haruhi would speak to another side of her which she usually tucked away until needed. She would never unlock this secret to anyone—or else they would think she was crazy.

Her mind then drifted some place else where it seemed safer and more normal. What time was it? Wasn't Ranka supposed to come home by now? Haruhi fretted that, if she lifted the thin veil to check the clock, she would be blinded by another round of flashes. She didn't want to see it—she was too much of a coward. The feeling was so unfathomable to her, yet she lived with the fear for so long. A flashback of Tamaki suddenly sprung into her mind, making her instantly remember the time he held her in his deep, protective arms. She reminisced around the feeling of security; a sense of defense she never obtained through loneliness.

"_You will never be alone anymore…"_

Without realizing it, Haruhi's mouth creased to a smile. Bravery then swelled inside of her, urging her to fight through it. She worried about Ranka, and she needed to call him to see if he was all right. Family was more important to her than herself. If Haruhi was going to do this, she had to build the courage to step out of the quilt. Her hands quivered as she forced her hands to unveil the blanket from her head, subconsciously aware that another strike of thunder was going to hit. From one foot to the other, onwards from of her bedroom to the kitchen, she tried to convince herself that lightning was merely an inevitable sign of weather and a source of electricity, but, even if these facts were scientifically correct, the occurrence was still terrifyingly unpleasant. She couldn't help but scream on the inside.

_I better hurry…_, Haruhi thought. She decided that the faster she was to retrieve the phone, the quicker she could return to her bedroom. Still in her pajamas, she walked through the living room and was about to reach for the phone until her eyes caught something irregular through the rain-streamed window. She then froze with her arm still reaching forward, and her eyes grew larger than they already were. What _was_ that out there? Haruhi's heart beat faster when she considered the idea of it being a person…. A round of thunder occurred, but she stood frozen. She couldn't believe it…. Its waves sent blinding light so she was unable to see. She was scared at the possibility that someone might have…. The flash died down when she went closer to get a better view.

Then, Haruhi's vision went blank—as if she'd fainted but her eyes were wide open with dismay and her hand automatically touched the window; the closest she could get to Ranka.


	2. Chapter 1: New Year

_**Translations:**_

_**Ohayo gozaimasu: **__Good morning (formal)_

_**Ohayo:**__ Good morning (informal)_

_**Konnichiwa:**__ Hello/hi/hey_

_**Hai:**__ Yes/yeah_

_**Ja ne: **__See you later_

_**Sumimasen:**__ Pardon me_

_**Gomen nasai: **__Sorry (more exaggeratingly)_

_**Arigato:**__ Thank you_

—_**san: **__a formal, courteous address for a person in general_

—_**senpai: **__a courteous address of a male you are friends with or a male at a higher level than you_

**New Year**

~_It sounded tempting to shield herself away from reality for a day—maybe two—escaping everything that had came crashing down too soon._~

For the past week, all Haruhi had being seeing was… nothing. She had barely paid attention to what she had been doing since that haunting night. She didn't even realize that she was blinded from the world. Unfortunately for her, Haruhi's moping had to come to an end; she had to be prepared for a new year—her second year at Ouran Academy. As reluctant as she was to do anything more than just eat and sleep, she had to remind herself of the important scholarship that could not be ignored. She had to find some way to distract herself, but nothing came to mind. Haruhi sighed as she forced her eye lids open to a radiantly sunny day—way too cheerful for her liking at the moment. Her thoughts lingered around the word "happiness". She remembered what it was like… and she loved it. Where was it now? How could she get it back? It seemed hopeless to search.

Haruhi summoned up the strength to get ready for her first day back. Waking up to two prestigious household maids, Haruhi frowned in annoyance. She sat up from a gigantic bed which looked like it should be shared with at least one or two more people. The day after the incident, she was pressured into moving into a temporary home. Of course, she refused their service but Ouran Academy's authority thrived upon a healthier, richer lifestyle. _A better lifestyle? Damn these rich people. I would feel so much better living in my regular apartment than _this_, _Haruhi thought, recalling her unconditional relocation.

"Ohayo gozaimasu, Fujioka-san," Aimi and Emiko greeted in unison.

It was bad enough that she had to change homes; move all of her significant belongings; leave the furniture she'd been using since she was four years old; adapt to an unnecessarily huge rental apartment with maids who catered after her every move and never let her clean or cook by herself—and now these women, who bow down like slaves, would be here every morning she woke up? This was too much.

"Good morning," Haruhi responded, not thrilled at all.

"What would you like for breakfast, ma'am?" Emiko politely asked. Aimi and Emiko were twin sisters, and strangely happened to have the same jobs….

"Nanimo…," Haruhi refused. "Arigato though. I just don't feel like having breakfast today."

Aimi came close to Haruhi's face, raising her eyebrows. "I know you have been going through a hard time, Fujioka-sane, but you should not skip the most important meal of the day."

"Sou," Emiko agreed. "You haven't been eating breakfast in quite a while. You're starting to look a little unhealthy."  
"Look, you guys, I'm not trying to be rude or anything but there is no need for you to lecture me," Haruhi rebutted. "I can take good care of myself. Don't worry, okay?" She was close to complaining about all of the riches of this new temporary home but she couldn't bother. She knew nobody would truly listen to her.

Haruhi stepped out of the bed's silky sheets and made her way to the large, marble-invented washroom. She fretted every day that one time she would slip from the extremely shiny tiles. But that didn't seem like a bad idea anyway. Maybe cracking her head against the floor would knock the depression out of her. Dying didn't seem too bad either, but Haruhi couldn't admit that.

As she did her daily routine, she gathered her last-minute thoughts regarding her plans. In fact, she hadn't known of the date back to school until yesterday, when the maids informed her. She knew that she had to summon some life into her system in order for witnesses to suspect nothing of her woes, but it seemed nearly impossible. Today was a whole new beginning. Haruhi wondered about how she was going to disguise her true feelings. Maybe she could simply say: "I'm fine." That seemed to make sense to her. Although Hikaru and Kaoru would be in all of her classes, because they were in the same grade and status-rank, so it would be absolutely difficult to avoid being bombarded with personal questions. She might break down if they pried enough. Could she even face them?

Speaking of the twins… the Ouran Host Club…. They hadn't entered her mind ever since the accident. Great. Now there was another boulder weighted down on her shoulders. Haruhi couldn't handle being in the Third Music Room. She couldn't deal with entertaining young women. She couldn't bother being a Host Club member for the time being. Besides, she had already paid her debt to the school. A small sense of relief tickled in Haruhi's mind as she brushed her boyish-looking haircut. She was almost ready to leave. She decided that she could simply skip the after-school curricular until—or if—she pulled herself out of this overwhelming darkness. Kaoru and Hikaru wouldn't let her, she guessed, unless they had an explanation for her absence. But… it was too early to talk about it; too much blood leaking out of her to be ready. Haruhi had to find a way to efficiently avoid confrontation with the trouble two.

Haruhi slipped her male shoes on, grabbing the keys on the hook next to the door. She was unaware of the sympathetic looks she received from Emiko and Aimi. They stood right next to the door, prepared to close it for when Fujioka-san would leave the house. For a week, they would constantly compensate her with extra care. It was quit tragic to see such a young woman lose the only parent left and watch her cope with it, so they figured that much more attention and love was beneficial. It was sad to watch Haruhi push them away, still having the willingness to live on alone. What would become of this if she insists on being lonely?

Aimi and Emiko eyed her school bag in curiousity. Why was it so empty? Wasn't there supposed to be a big boxed-lunch inside?

"You're not going to eat lunch either?" Aimi asked before Emiko could. They knew they were thinking the same thing.

"Um… no, thanks," Fujioka-san responded. "I don't think I have the stomach for it, but if I do, I can just get something from the cafeteria," she reassured. Emiko raised her eyebrow skeptically. She had a feeling that Haruhi wouldn't eat a thing today because her appetite seemed bare ever since Haruhi moved here. "Ja ne." Fujioka-san then fled out of the house with a seemingly normal strut.

It was awkward for Haruhi to leave the huge apartment and then attend her own personal limousine. It wasn't fair. She wanted to live like a _normal_ person and _not_ pollute the Earth with constant gas usage. The matter that made things worse was the former-neighbours in her old apartment encouraging her to do all of these things. Maybe she was the only one who was annoyed by this… _royalty_.

"Ms. Fujioka." The personal driver gracefully opened the limo's cab door for her before she had the chance to open it herself.

Finally giving up hope, Haruhi sighed and grumbled, "Arigato" to the escort, whom she didn't know the name of.

He quickly retreated to the front wheel. Haruhi felt a light pull on her body from the limo starting to drive. As she gazed out of the dark-tinted window closest to her, her chocolate brown eyes shone distraction… and sadness. She knew she had to act as if everything was fine when she'd be in school, and another side of her regretted even showing up. It sounded tempting to shield herself away from reality for a day—maybe two—escaping everything that had came crashing down too soon.

Haruhi was unfortunately half an hour early. The school district wanted to ensure that she knew where all of her classes were, but that was barely a problem. The real issue at the moment was that she just wanted school to officially start already! _Well, you guys, this is my second year at Ouran Academy…. I hope you're proud of me… because I can hardly be. _Haruhi walked through the halls, looking at floor and classroom numbers, and concentrated a little too hard on memorizing the order and the teachers' names.

"Good morning, Haruhi-kun!" a preppy girl greeted, smiling. She half-way stopped and hoped to make small talk with Haruhi, but Haruhi was so oblivious, she didn't even notice. The girl then felt embarrassed by the rejection so she resumed walking with pink cheeks. She was too wrapped up on her own reputation that she didn't note the peculiar stare Haruhi gave to no one.

After memorizing every detail on the paper without looking, Haruhi panicked because she feared she might start thinking of darkness again. _Oh, no. _Now_ what am I going to do?_, she thought to herself. It was too dangerous to contemplate alone, so she sat down in her homeroom classroom and settled her books ready. She checked for the time on her watch…. There was still a lot of time left. All she had to do was be patient and wait….

But before Haruhi could get started on that plan, somebody popped up from behind her. "Ohayo, Haruhi!" a chorus of two jingled. She figured—it wasn't just one person. She smelled daring trouble.

Haruhi breathed in for a long moment, taking in the situation, and then exhaled. "Konnichiwa, Hikaru, Kaoru." She didn't realize the deadened tone in her voice which gave a lot of her mood away. Suddenly, the twins popped up in front of her with curious looks.

"So we hear that you moved into a rental," Kaoru Hitachiin stated. A huge pang of emotion struck Haruhi.

"Much better than that apartment of yours," Hikaru Hitachiin followed. The feeling rapidly swelled inside of her. "And it was paid for by the school," he continued a matter-of-factly. Hikaru put an arm on Kaoru's shoulder and leaned against him, dramatically checking his nails. "So… what's your deal?"

_Why couldn't they just mind their own business sometimes?_ Haruhi thought to herself as she attempted to keep herself together. She didn't want to talk about it and it was completely obvious that Hikaru and Kaoru had no idea what happened during the holidays. She knew that they would continue to pry until they get their answer. Why couldn't Haruhi lie? She felt reluctant to speak.

But she knew she had to…. Haruhi scrambled her brain for ideas to get them off track of their question. "That's not important. What we _should_ be talking about is the club…. When's our next meeting?"

Kaoru and Hikaru tsked her, pointing their fingers at her in mischief. "Nice try, Ha-ru-hi!" they playfully said. "But _you're_ going to tell us right now!"

She couldn't take it anymore. Her mind was messed up as it was. She needed to escape. She got up from her chair with a rough squeak, and the twins stared at her questoningly. Haruhi's bangs brushed over her eyes, shadowing the rest of her face. She prayed that she would not cry in front of them—in front of anyone, for that matter. Daring for excuse her absence, Haruhi struggled some words out. "I've… got to go to the washroom…. Sumimasen." Not a second after, she half-ran out of the classroom, her throat aching from blocking the overwhelming sobs.

Confused, Kaoru and Hikaru stiffly stood in the same spot and worriedly gazed out of the open door where Haruhi had left. Hikaru blinked, and then Kaoru spoke. "I hope she's okay…." Suddenly, something came to mind. Kaoru turned to his brother with serious countenance. "I wonder if she knows the new rules?"

"You think…" Hikaru trailed.

"She doesn't know that we have a club meeting right about now?"

Haruhi, fists tightly clenched, walked up the prestigeous school's staircases to head to the Third Music Room. She couldn't enter the girls' washrooms _or_ the boys' washroom, because somebody would find out that she was either a pervert or a girl; and she still wasn't comfortable with stepping into the guys' bathroom—that was just awkward. Haruhi was lucky to have her own room to change clothes and have other private purposes. She didn't worry about any Host Club members being in there because they had class, right? There would be no suspicions—no more questioning. She was safe. As her hand touched the doorknob, she felt flowing moisture grow in the back of her eyes. She thought that nobody would catch her in the act so… she let them fall. As her teeth ground together, Haruhi proceeded her way into the Third Music Room, ignorant of what she was about to walk into. With her eyes blinded with tears, she closed the door making as little noise as possible. Haruhi then turned around, on her way to the washroom… until she saw two figures. Her vision was too foggy through the tears to see who it was, but she was still stunned at the fact that she fell apart in front of someone in general. Aching with curiousity, Haruhi wiped her eyes with her sleeve and looked at the two again. Her eyes widened. It was Tamaki Suoh and Kyouya Ootori standing before her, just as shocked. She could clearly see worried expressions—even Kyouya, who was labelled the Shadow King.

"Haruhi?" Tamaki. The way he said her name made an eerie feeling in the atmosphere.

"S-senpais…" Haruhi breathily stuttered.

No one had seen her so upset besides Tamaki—there was a first for everything. The last of her thick tears dripped down her chin and quietly splashed onto the smooth, shiny surface.

Everybody stood frozen without a word for a moment and that was when Haruhi started to recall a memory from which she learned about selflessness. Ever since that evening when the Host Club taught her a lesson of dependance, Haruhi tried her best to take that knowledge with her wherever she went. The Hosts worried about her so they fell when she fell. She couldn't let that happen to them. Haruhi felt obligated so she said: "Gomen nasai." _I didn't mean to show my tears. Next time I won't do it again; not in front of you._ She bowed in courtesy, about to flee. She quickly spun around and curled her hand around the handle. She couldn't stand the guilt. She just wanted to be alone for once.

"Stop, Haruhi," a hard voice ordered.

Haruhi made a sound at the back of her throat. She was trapped. She figured that if she disobeyed, they would haul her back into the room making a huge scene. She decided to stay. Her facial expression turned gloomy again—she could keep it together for so long. She didn't feel the need to cry anymore, just numbness. Her reluctance to speak sprung out again. Haruhi said nothing as she kept her hand on the knob. She didn't know what was going to happen next, and concentrated on the footsteps that started. She then felt something warm wrap around her frail body. Arms, definitely arms, and they held her in such a comforting embrace that made her feel… secure. Haruhi detected a wisp of silky blond hair flawlessly sweeping against her cheek as the hug lightly tightened. She didn't know what to do in the moment, but she simply lingered around the heartfelt warmness she didn't want let go of.

Kyouya interrupted the trance by flatly saying: "Clean yourself up in the other room."

That was another astonishment today she didn't expect, but appreciated it anyways. This was an opportunity that was barely offered so she could ask questions later. She needed to go back to her solitude, like she'd first planned. Forgetting the sensational moment, she did what was told. "Hai," she agreed, bringing some life into her voice. She lifted her arms to reached Tamaki's and held them that indicated that he should let go of her. "Senpai?"

Tamaki carefully slid his arms away from her, as if he was handling delicate China. Haruhi felt cold again but didn't stop herself from half-way running to the washroom to be by herself.

_Why did it have to be like this?_, she asked herself, having her face aiming down the sink. Her oily hair covered her face. It irritated her because it was getting in the way. She felt like chopping it all off—hair was so bothersome. She even felt thankful to the little boy who stuck gum into her hair. Haruhi brushed the stringy locks out of her face and turned the tap on. Her face felt unbearably oily and pale, so she wanted to cleanse all of those demons away. Frantically slapping water onto her face, she gathered her thoughts. _Why was everybody acting so weird? For once, Tamaki-senpai managed to shut his mouth during desparate times and Kyouya…. Wait…. Could it be that they know already?_ Haruhi turned the tap off with a squeak and lifted her head up to examine her countenance with the mirror. Her hair was wet from the splashing water, and her face remained the same—emotionless and pale. She didn't even realize this before now, but she looked pitiful. She even developed bags and dark circles under her eyes from torturous nightmares and tears. She felt weak and that was the last thing she wanted to be. She wanted to be a strong-willed person; not a wimp. She'd been overconfident of her abilities all this time and now she was disappointed that she wasn't as capable as she'd once thought.

_I have to keep myself together… before the new year officially starts._


	3. Chapter 2: Effective

**Effective**

_~Her eyes watered up, silently pleading for him to leave.~_

Tamaki's hair gloomily shadowed over his eyes as he whipped around to Kyouya, who seemed to know everything. Kyouya casually had his black clipboard in one hand with a pen in the other. What could he possibly be writing at a time like this? Tamaki dismissed the inappropriate gesture. He just wanted to know what was going on with Haruhi.

"Kyouya… some answers, please," he quietly demanded. He struggled to keep himself cool while his mind was going berserk! Princes were _always_ supposed to keep themselves leveled and that was how Tamaki thought of himself—a prince dubbed an automatic King.

As Kyouya scribbled some possible resulting feedback regarding Haruhi Fujioka, he replied to Tamaki, "Well it's difficult for me to say. I will have to request permission from Haruhi… of course, to be sympathetic." Without Haruhi, there could be a huge distortion in the number of guests. Since the Host Club had to pay for the expensive things the King asked for, they may not even be able to afford it. Kyouya tilted his head upwards to inspect his worried friend for a second and then back at the notes. _Well… Tamaki aims high, that's for sure._ If they were to keep this place running, they would have to pay out of their parents' money and that was an incredibly scary thought. Haruhi was one of the club's best bet to host alongside them, despite her having a difficult time, or Kyouya would have to confront his… _husband_.

"Soka…" Tamaki breathed. Kyouya had a valid point. He was angry at the fact that he couldn't assist Haruhi, because he didn't know what lay behind her tears, but he also wanted to respect her privacy.

Kyouya stressfully rubbed his temples. He normally didn't ask Tamaki for much, because he would get dramatic about it, but this situation called for desperate measures. "Tamaki, can I ask you to do me a favour?"

"Uh, sure, Kyouya," Tamaki said, confused yet amused.

"Can you _not_ demand for so many features for the club?" Kyouya coolly asked. "I'm assuming that Haruhi isn't going to be present today or even the next few days, and the things that we're buying depends on the club's income…. Since the enrollment of newcomers hasn't quite settled, thus having less female customers, we might not be able to pay… unless you, me, or the twins ask our own family for the money."

He had his ways of trapping people whether it be threatening or put in a nice manner. He gave Tamaki the courtesy of his less aggressive side.

A comical electric shock shot through Tamaki. Kyouya sighed. He _knew_ that he was going to get obnoxious about this. Just when Tamaki dramatically swept his hand over to his forehead, a pair of familiar light-haired twins barged into the room.

Having distressed expressions on their faces, they were about to start on their story, but they happened to spot Tamaki having a moment.

"Hey, you guys—" Hikaru started, but stopped himself. Then annoyance spread across both Kaoru and Hikaru's faces once they saw what was going on. "So did we miss something here… Kyouya-senpai?" As he said this, Tamaki was flailing around the room talking nonsense nobody bothered to listen to. Everybody in the club was so prone to it that they eventually blocked it out of their ears—maybe except for Haruhi.

At last, Tamaki ended his dramatic rant with: "And I had it _all___planned out in my head…!" He groaned. "Not fair…."

Kyouya continued to jot notes down in this infamous clipboard. Without any sign of irritation, he lacked hesitation when he simply stated, "If we do not choose this option… Haruhi suffers." As Kyouya expected, Tamaki shut up for a moment which left the twins time to inform their urgency. Leaving Tamaki to reminisce in a serious manner, Kaoru started. "Speaking of which, something weird happened just a few minutes ago." That was when they took turns launching the story of them finding Haruhi in the classroom, stating that she'd acted strange.

Unsurprised, Kyouya pushed up the ridge of his spectacles with one slender finger. "It makes sense," he said as he turned his attention to Tamaki. "According to what Kaoru and Hikaru are telling us." _Same emotion; same pain-stricken face; very distracted_, Kyouya thought. _She must have not concealed herself even when people were around… not like I expected her to._

Just when Kyouya turned his head forward, Tamaki curled his hands into balls and smashed them onto the nearest coffee table. Everybody then looked behind Kyouya to see Tamaki close to tears, slightly red with anger. "Damn it…" he grumbled. His fists shook as they remained planted. "I want to know… I really want to know…. Kyouya!" he growled. "Tell me what is going on with her!"

It was abnormal to see Tamaki this aggravated, especially when he wasn't aware of what was hurting Haruhi.

"Calm down, my Lord!" the twins cried in unison. "We don't know as much as the next guy!" It angered Tamaki when they said that. It wasn't like they _wanted_ to know the truth. They were too immature to understand how important this girl was to everybody—especially Tamaki.

"But this is different!" he shouted. He stomped towards Hikaru and Kaoru with such a glare that would keep anyone in place. "I don't see her as just a _toy_! I am her _father_ and should do anything to protect her!"

Just the mentioning of _otou-san_ shocked Kyouya. _Tamaki, if only you knew…._

"For the last time, Lord," the twins fought back. "You are _not_ her biological father! You got that?"

Tamaki's ego shrunk as the words sank in… but he would persist that he feels like a guardian for her. _But in what way?_, his subconscious implied to him without any words needed to be formed. He was used to that voice that he dismissed it as per usual. Tamaki continued to believe that he had a right to claim her in whatever way possible, and that it be… what exactly? Uncertainty reached Tamaki's mind, which made him reconsider. That made him silent. He felt reluctant to argue any longer so he proceeded his steps towards the couch and stumbled next to Kyouya. He wanted to lie down—his head was thumping in such an annoying way. He needed a painkiller. Of course he needed to prevent anything dangerous from happening to his perfect-sized head.

"May I suggest an asperin, Daddy?" Kyouya offered as if he'd read Tamaki's mind. His reference to family—"Daddy"—seemed to brighten Tamaki up a bit as Tamaki looked up at Kyouya with puppy-dog eyes.

Although it seemed that Tamaki merely needed emotional support. "Nanimo," he replied with a sigh. "I need to do something about this."

Everybody didn't dare to attempt at a snooty response. They were all aware of the Lord's romantic feelings toward Haruhi—yet he _still_ hadn't discovered it—so they knew it was silence was the smartest thing to do.

Tamaki thought about Haruhi alone and sad, and him ignorant of everything. "Kuso…" he growled under his breath. Anger rose through him again. He stood up from the couch and witnessed everybody staring at him in curiousity. "If no one here is going to be there for her than I will!" he exclaimed.

Tamaki accidently knocked the coffee table on his way to rescue Haruhi but then… he tripped over the table and fell flat on his face.

Nobody expected such a goofily clumsy move from him after such a serious declaration. Kaoru and Hikaru sighed as they drooped with expressions as if to say that he was an idiot.

Kyouya pushed the middle of his glasses and calmly commented. "Baka…."

Tamaki had a comically worn out expression on his face as he remained on the ground with his rear sticking out. He shook his head to make the comedic countenance disappear and replaced it with determined eyes. _I will _not_ give up!_ A second after he started back up on his feet again, a black shoelace got in the way and… his face planted back on the floor. Just when the club members were getting hopeful of him making it the second time, he had to screw it up once more. _Kuso…._

"Senpai…" Hikaru grumbled, more annoyed than Kaoru. Jealousy was subconsciously inside of him, which caused his impatience to grow. "Why can't you do anything right at a time like this!"

Tamaki lifted his face off of the ground in astonishment, matching the others', as they all turned to look at his pain-stricken face. Hikaru could see the guilt in the Lord but he didn't give a damn. Who was going to save Haruhi if a clumsy idiot like him was crowned guardian of her? In his opinion, it should be _him_ who should compensate her, not the Lord, if anything was going to go well. "All of us stood back to let you to have this responsibility of taking care of Haruhi, and now _look_! It's like the most reliable ones are left out in the background and..." Before Hikaru could finish his speech, his brother grabbed a hold of him, holding Hikaru back. Hikaru hadn't noticed his own actions that he was about to hit Tamaki-senpai until he felt both of his arms being imprisoned. He growled in response, but didn't try to fight Kaoru. He needed time to cool off; to think more productively. Instead of giving Tamaki a beating, he could be of any assistance as quickly as possible to his sentimental toy—_I mean Haruhi_.

Tamaki made his way to the couch and slumped down beside Kyouya-senpai, who seemed unfazed. He let his face rest into his hands as he mumbled, "He's right…. I'm no good..."

"Oh, don't get your hopes down," Kyouya said. "Hikaru may have a point, but there is still a chance to fix it."

The Lord lifted his head and turned toward his companion. "You really think so?"

"Well it depends if you play your cards right."

Just from that metaphor, Tamaki rose to his feet once more with a devious smirk. "If you're talking cards, Kyouya, I shall be the King and Haruhi my damsel in distress!"

He _totally_ just mixed the whole saying up. Baka. "Uhh, senpai, don't you mean Queen?"

"Now, now. Just because you two have incest love, it doesn't mean I should have it, too, with my daughter, right?"

That bastard just crossed the freaking line. Instead of charging at him, Hikaru growled, "Just get out of here, senpai."

Instead of taking that as insult, what Hikaru hoped, Tamaki inferred that as an encouragement. "You're right! I got to save Haruhi!" Pacing, not running, Tamaki went to save the day…. How long did that take? In his opinion, Hikaru could have done so much better. Hikaru still had steam coming out from his head, with his face matching his auburn hair.

Tamaki was careful not to make a fool of himself again. He looked down throughout the way to Haruhi's private washroom, watching his shoelaces and the floor in case something interfered with his stride. Finally, he let his guard down once he saw a familiar door he always walked passed whenever it was occupied. For some reason, he felt the need to get up and walk around when Haruhi was gone, particularly whenever she went to the washroom to change. It wasn't like he was physically interested. He wanted to make sure that she was safe from any perverts from busting in. That was all. Tamaki shook away the thought and knocked on the door. He knew the door wasn't locked but he showed common courtesy in case she wasn't ready to reveal herself.

"Haruhi, may I come in?" he softly asked through the door. No response. "It's me, Tamaki. You don't have to worry."

He then heard a clicking sound, thus the door swept open. He felt flattered that Haruhi would open the door if she knew it was him until she said, "Why would I need to worry in the first place? I was just drying my face." The dead words that came out of her mouth seemed to be forced out in order to make coherent conversation. Her eyes seemed… empty. It scared him. It wasn't ghastly-looking, but it frightened him that demons came to claim her emotions. "So what did you want?" Her eyes watered up, silently pleading for him to leave.

As much as it killed him, Tamaki wouldn't let that happen. He came forward so he wouldn't see any more of those eyes, and lightly wrapped his arms around her. Her body was so cold… and frail, like before. He found himself slightly tightening in hopes of distributing his warmth onto her. "You seem to need…" How would Tamaki put it? A father? Not at a time like this. A King...? and she his Queen? "A friend."

Her small body under his felt limp, so he made his wrap even stronger. Nothing came out of her mouth and Tamaki didn't expect such a thing, but it caught him off guard when he felt skinny arms grabbing around his waist. Their two bodies came closer, tighter; not so light anymore.

"Arigato."

Tamaki also did not expect a few tears to spring out of his eyes. He wasn't crying in sadness, or joy; just the loveliness he had always reenacted in his role-play—only it was real. It felt right, and… he admitted that he was a sucker for these kinds of moments. That was what true Hosts were about!

"I'll stay with you for as long as you'd like," Tamaki assured her. He gingerly reached into his ivory jacket pocket to feel a crumpled ball of silk. He grasped onto its delicate soles and softly presented it to his princess, pulling his body slightly away. "Here."

Tamaki suddenly found that Haruhi had her eyes closed, probably to take in as much of the embrace as she could get, as she slowly and reluctantly opened them. Tamaki knew what feelings Haruhi had because everyone of his customers acted the same way: reluctant to pull away. Haruhi paused when she touched the napkin that was still in Tamaki's hand. A look of uncertainty shot through her eyes, and then decided to take it and brush it against the wetness of her cheeks.

But wait a minute… Haruhi was "his princess"? That was the name he called his customers. The look he assumed to be reluctance resembled a typical lovebird? No, that couldn't be…! Tamaki felt hot and he immediately covered his face with two hands as he turned his back to her.

"Hey…" the dead voice whispered. There must be some kind of explanation. "Daijoubu?"

Ahh! But of course. Tamaki had his resolution come together like it was there all this time. The pet name he called her was merely out of fatherly love. Since he was a King, a daughter would be a Princess, correct? With that other earlier analysis… he passed it off as something he was over-thinking. "Hai, Haruhi. But… are you better now?"

Haruhi _did_ feel a little lighter. This misery didn't seem to go away but… a person with this much care could chase some demons away. "Sort of…," she answered honestly. "Thanks for the napkin. I'll have to wash it before I give it back to you though. Sorry about that. It looks expens—"

"No need for you to give it back to me! It's nothing really. I have a lot more where that came from. You can count on it." Tamaki winked to reassure her.

Haruhi raised her eyebrow in annoyance. He acted conceded no matter what the situation was. Rich bastard….

"Would you like to stay here a while longer or are you ready to meet the old gang again?"

Haruhi had something else in mind. "Well… actually I should be going to class. I think I missed half of first period already…."

Tamaki lightly chuckled in arrogance. "Oh, Haruhi. So oblivious. You obviously haven't heard that school clubs start at the beginning on the first day of school!"

Haruhi blinked a few times. "Huh?"

"You see, we basically have it easier than we already do on the first day of school—it's a new policy—so first period is cut short by half a period by an extra club meeting."

"Oh…. Well that's stupid. Why would they do that?"

"I guess the school figured that the after-school activities are too popular to leave to only after school. I'm surprised that you haven't heard of this, Haruhi."

"I'm not exactly the social type…."

"You're in denial! After all, you _are_ an Ouran Host Club member."

"Right…. But, Tamaki-senpai, may I ask you a question?"

"Certainly."

"Hasn't half a period already gone by?"

Tamaki frowned and checked his watch, and then his face went comically stressed. "We gotta get to class!"

Haruhi's eyes widened too. This was bad. Really bad. She had to make a good first impression! Dust was behind her heels as she ran as fast as she could before Tamaki could do anything else. "Later, senpai!"

Kyouya was already gone. The twins planned on skipping first period anyway to play video games in the music room. They saw Haruhi fly to the door, not sparing a moment to look at them.

"Hi, guys. Bye, guys."

Kaoru and Hikaru blinked in unison. Hikaru asked, "Uh… what just happened?"

They then caught Tamaki running too. "I better see you after schoo—ah!" _Trip. Splat._

The twins weren't ashamed to laugh hysterically.


End file.
